Electric switching device for railways.



R. V. UHEATHAM. ELECTRIC SWITCHING DEVICE FOR RAILWAYS.

APPLICATION FILED JUNE 25, 1907 91?,541 Patented Apr. 6, 1909. 2 SHEETS-SHEET l.

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ELECTRIC SWITUHING DEVICE FOR EAILWAYS.

APPLICATION PTLED JUNE 25, 1907.

2 SHEETS-SHEET 2 Patented Apr. 6, 1909.

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ROBERT v. OHEATITAM, or LOUISVILLE, KENTUGKT, ASSIGNOR T0 CHEATHAM ELECTRIC SWITCHING DEVICE GOMPANY,O1- LOUISVILLE, KENTUCKY.

'ELECTRTC SWITCHING DEVICE FOR RAILWAYS.

Specification of Letters Patent.

latented April 6, 1900.

Application filed. June 25, 1907. Serial No. 380,669.

T 0 all whom it may concern:

Be it known that 1, ROBERT V. CHEAT- HAM, a citizen of the United States, and a resident of Louisville, county of Jefferson, and State of Kentucky, have invented a new and useful Improvement in Electric Switching Devices for Railways, of which the following is a specification.

The objectof my invention is to improve the details of construction of the switching deviceshown in my prior patents, (612,702,

696,313, and 787,827) as will more particularly hereinafter appear.

For a more particular description of my invention reference is had to the accompanying drawings forming a part hereof, in which Figure 1 is a perspective View of the trolley an and circuit changer. Fig. 2 is a plan view of the trolley pan. Figs. 3 and 4 are sectional views taken on the lines 3.3 and 4.4

respectively of Fig. 2 looking in the direction of the arrows. Fig. 5 is a longitudinal elevation, partially in section, of the solenoid and its incasing cylinder, the solenoid being used to throw the switch point.

Throughout the various views of the drawings similar reference characters designate similar parts.

The trolley wire 1 is provided at a suitable place with suitable clamps 2 to which the I trolley wire is soldered or held in the usual way therein. The inner ends of these clamps 2 are provided with outwardly and downwardl extending plates 3, which plates are prefer-a ly formed of one integral piece that extends under the trolley. 'lhese plates 3 may be held in place by any suitable means, as by bolts 4 extending from a head 5 formed on the clam 2. The wings 3 are connected by parallel strips 6, which are rectangular in cross section and so disposed that their lower surfaces rest flat on the diagonally disposed plates 3. The strips 6 are held in place by means of bolts 7, or other suitable means. The deflecting blocks 8 rest on the stri' s 6 and have mortises 9 so as to fit snug on t e strips, asshown, and these deflecting blocks 8 are also grooved at 10 to carry the trolley wire and raise it above its normal level and clear of the lower surfaces of strip 6.

Insulated from plates 3 and secured to the the trolley wire 1 by conductor 19, so that the strip;

lower surfaces of the strip 6 are the fiat metal bars 11, 12 and 13 on one strip 6, and the bar 14 on the other. These bars are held by suitable bolts 15, or other suitable means.

The bars 13 and 11 have no electrical con nections and are carefully insulated.

bars 12 and 14 are connected with. wires to The the controlling mechanism, as will appear below. V

The parts of the trolley Cpan, just above described, are so arrange trolley wheel 16 runs from the wire 1 to the trolley pan it will first bridge the gap between strips 11 and 14, then between the strips 12 and 14, and finally between the strips 13 and 14, and be off the trolley wire, which is raised at these points, but the course of the trolley is practically a straight line so that it is not moved any more than it would be if there were no trolley pan. the trolley is under the trolley pan and in engagement therewith, it has no connection with the wire 1.

The controller 17 is the same as shown and described in my former atents, and is therefore not shown or described here exce )t in a diagrammatic way. It is connects with a conductor 18 and the strip 14 by a 14 is always charged with elcctrici tg throng the magnet of the controller 17. he bar 12 is connected with a conductor 20 which )asses to the plate 21, which is attached and Insulated from the core 22, of the magnet 23 of this controller 17. The )late 21 may be in contact with the lower piate 24 on which it normally rests, or the upper plate 25. The plate 24 is connected with a wire 26 which runs to the winding at the left of the solenoid shown in Fig. 5 and the upper plate 25 is connected by a wire 27 with the Winding of the solenoid at the right of the structure shown in Fig. 5.

The casing 28 is preferably tubular in form and provided with an. integral head 29, through which is a straight bore 30. The other end of this casing is provided with an inwardly projecting collar 31, on which rests a gasket 32 against which is secured a screw plug 33, which fits corresponding threads in the casing or casting 28. Near the collar 31 is a screw threaded o enin in the walls of the casing 28 in whic is p aced a screw that when a.

While plug 3 1. Near the screw plug 3 1 is a second opening which is connected with the union 35, which is in turn connected with the pipe 36, through which the conductors 26 and 27 pass, and this pipe runs to the controller 17, so that at no point are the conductors 26 and 27 in any way exposed to climatic conditions. Mounted in the casing 28 is a brass tube 37 which passes through. the center of this casing, and. the two magnets, one for each solenoid, are supported thereon in a central are 38, one collar abuts position by col against the head or plug 33, and the other against a spring 39 which is coiled so as to rest against the integral head 29, and this tube 37 is screw threaded where it passes through the head29 and is held in place by a nut 40 on its outer extremity, and at its other end, the tube 37 is screwed into the head 33. The tube 37 is open at both ends. The head 33 is also provided with a perforated ear 41 in wljiich rests a coiled spring 42, which also rests in the tube 87, so that air or water can pass freely into the open end of this tube and'the spring 42 acts as a cushion for the core 43, should such action be necessary; The core 43 fits loosely in the tube 37 and is preferably formed of two parts, one 44; of iron and the other 45 of brass, the part as being in the end next the cushioned spring 42. The outer end 16 of the core 13 is bent upwardly to engage the switch throwing mechanism precisely as described in my former patents above referred to.

The solenoids 47 and 48 are wound on their respective tubes 47 and 48* having fiber heads 47 and 48 screwed thereon. The solenoids 17 and 48 are grounded at one end of their windings and the other ends are connected with the wires 26 and 27 respectively. The tubes 47 a and 4 8 are placed. on the tube 37 between the collars 38. Except for the grounding ofjtho wires at their inner ends the solenoids and -48 are carefully insulated botb from the casing 28 and from each other.

"device is the same as described in my preceding patents. A large current that ex ccods the combined current capacity of the heaters, lights andpump is required to energizethe controller 17 sufficiently to raise the armature 22 and thereby shift the contact plate 21 from the lower contact plate 24 to the upper contact plate 25, so that if only a small current of electricity is passed through the trolley mechanism when the trolley wheel 16 is in the position shown a circuit is maintained through the conductor 18, magnet 23, wire 19, strip 14, wheel 16, strip 12, conductor 20, plate 21 and 2 1, conductor 26 and solenoid 47, thereby causing the switch to be set so that a car will move straight ahead. If a heavy current is drawn through the trolley pole, as is the case when the motors are active, the circuit isthe same as' ancewith the direction in which he wishes to go.

In the foregoing has been set forth one embodiment of my invention. It is obvious that it is not restricted to the recise details of construction therein set fort enough to cover all structures that come within the scope of the annexed claims.

What is claimed is:

1. In a device of the class described a trolley pan having parallel flat strips with flat bottoms inclined at an angle to the horizontal and conducting bars secured to said inclined lower surfaces.

2. In a device of the class described a trolley pan having parallel flat strips with inclined lower surfaces, conducting bars, insulated from. each other andsecured to said lower surfaces, and" means for throwing a switch point connected with some of said conducting bars.

3. In a trolley pan or similar device clamps, parallel strips uniting said clamps, said strips having inclined lower surfaces, flat bars resting on said surfaces, and deflecting blocks above said bars.

4. In a trolley pan or similar device clamps, strips, rectangular in cross section, with inclined lower surfaces, uniting said clamps, and flat conducting bars secured to the lower surface of said strips.

5. In a trolley pan or similar device clamps, parallel strips, rectangular in cross section, uniting said clamps, flat conducting bars secured to the lowpr surfaces of said strips, and mortised deflecting blocks placed on the upper surfaces of said strips.

6. In a deviceof the class described, solenoids mounted in a casing, each independent of the other, a tube extending through the solenoids, a casing and a cushioned spring secured in alinement with the bore of said tube and adapted to be impinged by acore in said tube means for controlling the operation ofsaid solenoid connected with a trolley wire.

7 In a device of the class described a but is broadelmel 4 casing, a union secured to said eesing e said plug and electrical means connected to screw threaded opemng ad acent tosaid Sal-d solenold, whereby 1t may be operated umon, a plug 111 sand 0 emng, and asolenmd by a troHey.

v insaid eas1ng,' and aving wires leading ROBERT V. CHEATHAM therefrom and adapted to be secured to Witnesses:

other wires brought through said union R BT, R. REIS,

through the opening normally closed by T. M. GETTYS. 

